London, April 26: Roger Federer intends to return to tournament tennis after what will have been more than a year away from the tour by playing at the Swiss Indoors in October.
The event in Basel announced in a statement posted on its website on Tuesday that the 20-time Grand Slam champion “has officially entered the tournament and will appear on the entry list with the protected ATP ranking” of No. 9.
His agent, Tony Godsick, confirmed to The Associated Press that is Federer’s plan.
Federer’s first match there is scheduled for Oct. 25, according to the website.
The 40-year-old Swiss star has not played a competitive match since losing to Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-6 (4), 6-0 in the Wimbledon quarterfinals on July 7. Soon after that defeat, Federer had surgery to repair damage to his meniscus and cartilage in his right knee – the third time in a span of 1 1/2 years that knee was operated on.
Federer has won a men’s record eight championships at the All England Club. He and Novak Djokovic are tied for the second-most overall major tennis titles won by a man; they trail Rafael Nadal, who has 21.
Federer said in an interview with a Swiss newspaper in November that he expected to miss Wimbledon this year – it starts on June 27 – and was not sure when, if ever, he might be able to play again at a high level, although he did “want to see one last time what I’m capable of as a professional tennis player.” In February, Federer and Nadal announced they were both planning to participate in the Laver Cup in London on Sept. 23-25.
That would mark Federer’s return to action for the first time since last July – albeit not at a full-fledged tournament but at a team event founded by his management company.
Federer has won the Swiss Indoors trophy 10 times. The tournament will return this year after being called off in 2020 and 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic. (AP)
